Laser tracker relative range error evaluation by the back-to-back, common path single pass, and common path double pass methods

Published

August 16, 2023

Author(s)

Marcos Motta de Souza, Bala Muralikrishnan, Vincent Lee, Daniel S. Sawyer

Abstract

The Dimensional Metrology Group (DMG) at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) has a unique 60 m long length facility that provides traceable reference lengths for the evaluation of measuring tapes, optical fibers, electronic distance meters, laser trackers and terrestrial laser scanners. In this report, we compare three methods to evaluate the ranging error of laser trackers in this facility. These include the back-to-back, the common path single pass, and the common path double pass method. We describe the different methods and compare them in terms of their advantages and disadvantages.

Citation

NIST Interagency/Internal Report (NISTIR) - 8468

Report Number

8468

NIST Pub Series

NIST Interagency/Internal Report (NISTIR)

Pub Type

NIST Pubs

Download Paper

https://doi.org/10.6028/NIST.IR.8468

Local Download

Keywords

back-to-back, common path, double pass, laser tracker, maximum permissible error, relative range error, single pass, test uncertainty

Citation

Motta de Souza, M. , Muralikrishnan, B. , Lee, V. and Sawyer, D. (2023), Laser tracker relative range error evaluation by the back-to-back, common path single pass, and common path double pass methods, NIST Interagency/Internal Report (NISTIR), National Institute of Standards and Technology, Gaithersburg, MD, [online], https://doi.org/10.6028/NIST.IR.8468, https://tsapps.nist.gov/publication/get_pdf.cfm?pub_id=936158 (Accessed October 9, 2025)